Temple of Indra's Lies (Time-Traveling Bibliophile Book 3) Read online

  “I guess someone didn’t get out of the way.”

  “That’s not funny.” I said, biting my lip to avoid laughing. “I think we just witnessed an accident. Look at those people gathering.”

  “I’m sure it happens all the time here, love. I read that someone gets hit every four minutes in this country.”

  “What’s going on out there?” Leslie shouted.

  I popped my head back inside the room to answer her. She was standing outside the bathroom door in a green dress, looking herself over in the arabasque-silhouetted mirror.

  “We just witnessed an accident,” I replied. “I think it’s a serious one. The trucks have actually slowed down out there,” which was saying a lot for this place.

  “There are too many accidents here. I think I’ll avoid crossing the road from now on.”

  “Or ye could wait eight months; ye’ll be as big as a house by then.”

  Both Leslie and I turned on Cullen, revealing our death glares.

  At five foot nothing and a hundred pounds soaking wet, Leslie was not destined to be huge, even if she carried full term, which I hoped she wasn’t planning to do.

  “What?” Cullen frowned. “I meant a beautiful palace.”

  I shook my head letting him know that he wasn’t off the hook.

  “Ye know,” Cullen smirked, “if anything I think you’ve lost weight the last few weeks. Maybe you should be resting more.”

  I turned back to Leslie who was wearing a long strapless green maxi dress, her collarbones jutted out.

  “Cullen’s an insensitive ass but he’s right, you should lay down for a bit. We don’t need you hemorrhaging in India.” I said.

  Cullen moved to my side, dropping a kiss on my forehead. “And that’s my cue to go. I’m off to pay for the tour.” He bit his lower lip. “Whatever ye do, love, don’t go disappearin’ on me.”

  “Funny,” I said, rolling my eyes. Though considering my history of time travel he did have a point.

  Cullen grabbed me by the shoulders. “I mean it. Stay in the hotel room and out of trouble. For God’s sake, I can’t risk losin’ ye again, don’t go wanderin’ down the street to see what happened.”

  He’d been waging an inner battle where I was concerned ever since his brother tried to kill me weeks before. On one hand, I found the constant attention delightfully romantic. On the other, it was getting old.

  He took a hard look at me and turned to Leslie. “Make sure she stays put.”

  “I promise to stay put as long as you agree to never comment on a pregnant woman’s body again”

  “Lesson learned,” he said and kissed my forehead. “I love ye.”

  “I know,” I said with a wink and he walked away.

  Leslie was already snuggled up in a chair in the corner of the balcony looking as nauseous as ever. Whether it was the affection or the spawn inside her, I couldn’t be sure. I glanced at her carefully. “Are you gonna throw up?”

  “I’m fine,” she said dismissively. “Just a really long night, the spice isn’t exactly agreeing with the baby. Do you think Cullen’s really found it this time?”

  “Who knows? It would be nice to go home and sleep in our own beds.” I almost added and to put that psycho Liam and the cursed sapphire behind me but the memory of being captured had bile creeping up my throat.

  “Are you sure I’m not intruding?” Leslie asked, pulling me from the chaos of my mind. “I feel like a third wheel, sharing a room with you guys.”

  “Ignore Cullen’s inappropriate libido. You are not a third wheel. Yes, there are three of us, and yes it sucks that they didn’t have a suite available but we’ll look for a different place tomorrow. Anyway, I need to keep an eye on you. “ I said, reaching a hand out for her belly. It was completely flat but I knew what was growing inside of her…like a cancerous tumor.

  Leslie turned green as I spoke. I opened my mouth to ask if she was okay but I was afraid she’d pop me one if I asked again.

  “You know, Sophia, you don’t look so well yourself. You’ve dropped at least ten pounds since Cullen’s mother’s funeral.”

  “At least my wedding dress won’t be so tight.” I said with a chuckle. The Gatsby style vintage lace gown had been made with my measurements and yet it had been almost as painful to wear as the 19th-century corsets I’d endured in the past.

  Leslie closed her eyes. “I don’t know how many more times I can throw up; maybe you could just push me down the temple steps. Put me out of my misery.”

  “That’s not funny,” I said involuntarily cracking a smile. I couldn’t help but find amusement in her morbid logic.

  “Hey! Do you see that crowd dispersing?” Leslie said jumping to her feet, “I think that’s a body. You never said someone actually got hit.”

  I didn’t have my glasses on but at that moment I caught sight of a pair of bare feet and caramel-coloured legs. The rest of the body was hidden from sight behind the crowd. I backed up and into the small round table. It clattered to the floor, sending my jewelry box flying through the air. I swore and stretched my arm out for it, even leaning against the sketchy balcony railing, but the box was far out of my reach. It thudded, a warm, muffled sound, as it landed on the pile of garbage in the small narrow alley below.

  My heart dropped into my stomach.

  “No. Oh, hell no—”

  “Was that what I think it was?” Leslie asked.

  I turned to her, nodding. I could feel my eyes bulging. “My jewelery box. I have to go get it.”

  “But we can’t…you promised Cullen you wouldn’t leave.”

  Leslie followed me through the arched entrance from the balcony to the room as I headed for the door.

  And right into Cullen’s smiling face.

  Chapter Fourteen

  P.S. I Must Leave You

  Northern Ireland, November 1551

  Sive picked up her lantern and walked briskly, exiting the cave’s passageway. Following the path up and away from the castle’s light. The wind sent the loose strands of her hair flying madly about her face. Steadily upward she pulled herself over the hills until at last she saw the thatched roof of the abandoned cottage and quickened her pace. It was essential that they go undetected tonight. The skeleton of what had once been a beautiful home was now reduced to decay. The roof leaked and the animals had made a home inside. Sive did not enjoy coming here on her own in the dark. Even though she was not as superstitious as the staff, she always felt the presence of something restless and unsettled within the abandoned walls. But it was close and private enough to be a meeting place. Halfway up the bluff, she stopped to catch her breath. The ascent was steep, her walk had been brisk, and she bent over, panting.

  The cottage was small. On one side of the fireplace rose a short set of stone steps leading to a loft. A wicker basket holding peat bricks sat near the hearth, and recessed into one wall was a neatly made bed with a faded quilt.

  Sive waited for Conal outside, sitting with her back to the wall of the cottage. She was at her ease now, leaning on a wall, her knees drawn up, watching the moonbeams sparkle on the waves. A crumbling stone wall flanked the cottage, sheltering her from the wild wind. She sighed and leaned her head back, closing her eyes as she reflected on dinner with Da and Sorely Boy. What could she possibly do? Please let Conal have a solution?

  Suddenly, she heard something that sounded like a footstep. The density of the fog moving in alarmed Sive. She strained her eyes, searching the landscape. It was too early for Conal to be here. She rose, straining her eyes in the darkness, as cold fear washed over her. Finally Sive shook her head and chuckled, attributing everything to an overactive imagination. She turned to move and came face to face with a short figure in a dark, hooded robe. A bolt of terror shot through her, and she stood frozen, unable to move or to speak.

  Every tale of phantoms and apparitions raced through her mind, and the specter moved silently toward her with a white hand outstretched. She stepped back and gasped.

&n
bsp; Suddenly the hooded figure stepped out of the shadows and hissed, “Dinna be a fool, girl. I’m not what ya think.”

  The figure reached up and lowered her hood. There in the moonlight stood Conal’s servant. “It’s nice to see ye again,” she said in a gentle voice. “I’ve come to take ye to yer man. He couldn’t get away in time.”

  “Fiona. I was so startled a minute ago, I forgot my manners.”

  ”Ye mistook me for a banshee, never ye fret. The wind and shadows can get the best of anyone up here.”

  They walked down the bluff quickly, neither saying a word. Sive was uneasy going so far from Dunlace castle. They’d always met here, but she trusted Conal would get her home safe before morning. He always did.

  She led Sive in through the servant’s door of the castle and into the kitchen. Fiona wiped her hands on her apron. “Would ye like some tea, dear? Ye look very cold.”

  Sive imagined the tea would feel wonderfully warm, but she needed to see Conal. “No tea, thank ye. I need to speak to himself. The matter is urgent.”

  Fiona laughed and said, “Aye, sweet girl, I bet ‘tis!” She turned to a stone crock, drew some brandy into an earthenware mug and handed it to her. “This will do, then.”

  Sive took a sip and then followed Fiona up some steps and down a hall. The brandy felt warm as it went down, and she felt the tensions of the day start to dissolve.

  Fiona pointed to a door and then turned and went back the way she’d come.

  Sive knocked and waited. When she received no answer, she knocked a little louder, and began pacing. Fiona had said this was Conal’s room but what if she was wrong. What would she do if someone caught her here? Her Da had spies everywhere and this could be a trap set by the witch—to get her locked in the dungeon again.

  She tried the handle. The door was unbolted, and she slipped inside the room, closing it quietly behind her to avoid unwanted attention. Before she could fully look around the room her back was shoved into the door behind her.

  Their gazes met and held. She drew in a breath that was almost a sob. Pressing a trembling hand to her breast, she took a step forward.

  “Thank God, ye’re here....” Her words trailed off as he kissed her. She reached with trembling hands to touch him. His chest felt solid beneath her fingers. She let out the breath she had been holding and her body reacted to his kiss the way it always did. All of her worry melted away, along with every other sensible thought in her head. She knew she should stop him and tell him what had just happened at dinner, but when his hands dropped from the door to cup either side of her face, she found herself leaning into him, desperate to get closer.

  As his tongue slid deeper into her mouth, the feeling of his fingers running along her neck and up into her hair undid her completely. She moaned into his mouth and he pushed his hips toward her.

  It wasn’t until his hand dropped to cover her breast that Sive returned to her senses. Oh God. This must stop.

  “We mustn’t,” she managed. “I’ve come to tell ye something.”

  Conal chuckled slightly. “Tell me after I’ve had my fill of ye. Now turn around and allow me to undress you.”

  Sive obeyed knowing this could be the last time, and his hands instantly moved against the laces, loosening them with only a few quick strokes. As he stripped her down to her chemise, she turned and faced him, only to be pulled against him once more.

  She moaned loudly as he bent his head to kiss her neck and chest.

  “Ach, Sive! Are ye ready for me, lass? ‘Cause I need ye.”

  “Yes.” She moved away from him to climb atop the bed.

  He grinned and quickly removed his own clothing. Then he spread himself on top of her, his mouth meeting hers with a desperate hunger that she returned.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Raiders of the Lost Sparkle

  Southern India, September 2015

  When Cullen walked in on me exiting the hotel room, his expression registered surprise at first, then quickly shifted to suspicion. I backed up and he glared at me.

  “There you are.” I said, quickly recovering. “I thought I heard you out there.”

  “Promised me what, Sophia?”

  “That we would figure out who haunts Dunlace and why.” I fibbed, “By the way, that was fast. Rejected again?”

  “Hardly. Give yer brilliant man a kiss.”

  “You got us into the Airavatesvara Temple tour?” I said, clapping my hands together.

  “I didn’t.”

  “Harrumph.” I said.

  “Not my fault, Aeval. The South Indian Tours muppet didn’t bother to show. I even had the lass at the desk ring him up, no answer.”

  “So we’re not going, then?” I asked, confused.

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “Get on with it already, you bloody peacock.”

  “I met a tour guide named Mani.” He said, and held up a brochure with three small red tickets stapled in the corner. You would have thought it was a trophy the way he grinned.

  “What’s that?” I asked.

  “Tickets. Mani set us up with Tuk-tuks. We go to the temple Saturday morning and the best part is, he knows where the statue is hidden.”

  I yanked the paper out of his hand. The jewels could wait a moment. Truth be told, the farther they were from me, the better. “Where did you find this guy?”

  “I didn’t exactly find him. I was introduced to him by another Dubliner.”

  The words drew my nose from the brochure. “Really?”

  “And now we’ve plans to visit the temple in two days’ time. Aren’t I brilliant?”

  I reached up on my toes and gave him a big kiss. “Yes, you are, and I’ll thank you properly when you find us a new hotel with two rooms.”

  He grinned. “I’m two for two then ‘cause ye’ll never guess who the Dubliner was.”

  Leslie cut in looking very impatient. “Umm… Sophia…shouldn’t we be going downstairs?”

  “Who?” I asked, ignoring Leslie. The jewels weren’t going anywhere; after all, the point of this trip was to get rid of them.

  Leslie narrowed her eyes and tilted her head at me. Luckily Cullen wasn’t paying attention.

  “Coincidentally, it was our client.”

  “Sam,” I said.

  Leslie perked up at the name and I grinned. That shut her up. He was just her type—dark hair and dark eyes. Too much like Cullen’s brother, Liam, if you asked me. I could have sworn I’d seen him at the Sati Chaura Ghat earlier in the trip, but I’d dismissed it as my overactive imagination.

  “What’s he doing here?”

  “He got called on a last minute assignment. Anyway, he earwigged my chat with the lass at the desk and introduced me to this Mani. He was after bookin’ the tour as well. Isn’t that a knee slap? Anyway, he invited us to join him for Thali.”

  I didn’t like coincidences, not after all I’d been through, but as I thought of the plate of rice surrounded by small bowls of delicious spicy vegetables, curries and curd, my stomach let out an enormous growl. What could it hurt; it was only dinner after all.

  “He’s staying at the Paradise Hotel—much nicer than this one and it’s outside of town, so I called and booked us a couple of rooms. We’ll go there and have dinner so pack your stuff.”

  That was music to my ears or rather silence, which is what I’d prefer after all the honking of late.

  “Oh and Saraswati left a message at the desk. She’ll be along in twenty minutes. You’re to meet her outside the café. “

  I suddenly remembered the jewels and realized I was only delaying the inevitable by not telling Cullen. Not to mention I was pushing my luck by leaving them there.

  Cullen looked up as I zipped up my suitcase and headed for the door. “Didn’t ye hear me, there’s no need to rush, we’ve twenty minutes still.”

  “No, we have to go now.” I paused. “I knocked the jewels off the balcony so I need to retrieve them.”

  Hearing that, he turned as w
hite as my dress.

  “Jaysus, Sophia, and ye let me yammer on like a bloody idiot. Have ye lost yer mind.”

  “They’re fine. No one saw them fall and they landed in a pile of garbage. No one is going to root through that disgusting mess. Trust me, I can smell it from here.”

  Cullen stormed across the room, out onto the balcony.

  “Clearly, ye’ve forgotten that two thirds of this country are dirt poor. Can ye imagine what they could buy with an engagement ring and a bejeweled dagger?”

  Broad shouldered and tall, Cullen propped his elbows on the balcony and gazed out to the noisy street below. I had the irrational thought that he might simply bust through the beat-up railing to get there as fast as possible. He turned to face me.

  “Our luck whoever found them would try and kill ye.”

  He had a point. That was how the curse worked, not that I’d admit it.

  “Well, hurry up then and let’s get down there. There’s no point standing around here yelling.” I motioned for Leslie to come and twisted the doorknob.

  “I’ll just go and wait for Sam in the lobby.” Leslie said, “While you guys dig through that lovely pile of feces and maggots.”

  “Gee, thanks.” I rolled my eyes.

  “Don’t give me that look, Sophia. One whiff of that stuff and you know that I’ll make a worse mess.”

  “Yeah, Yeah,” I said, supposing she was right. The problem was, I knew my best friend and she had god awful taste in men. Escaping garbage duty may have been alluring, but so was the castle owning-journalist waiting in the lobby. I just hoped she wasn’t running from one pile of trash to meet another.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Second Sight

  Northern Ireland, November 1551

  The witch returned to her desk once again after wandering the caves below, her favorite ritual before gazing into the future. The full moon was only two weeks away now. She was happy that her plan had worked and the talks between the Ó Catháins and the McQuillans had soured.